Dispensing-cabinet for collapsible drinking-cups and similar articles.



W. E. SWIFT.

DISPENSING CABINET FOR ACOLLAP'SIBLE DRINKING CUPS AND SIMILAR ARTICLES.

APPLIcATIoN man Aue.26, m2.

1,179,776. Patented Apr. 18, 1916.

Egg/,UWM W g 5 3f @MW fffomeg `shelf 3 having a slot 4t y the frontv of the cabinet.

UNITED STATES PATENT FFIQE.

WIIIJARD E. SWIFT, OF WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO UNITED STATES ENVELOPE COMPANY, 0F SPRINGFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION OF MAINE.

DISPENSING-CABINETFOR GOLLAPSIBLE DRINKING-CUPS AND SIMILAR ARTICLES.

intacte.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application led August 26, 1912. Serial No. 717,026.

To all whom it may concern.'

Be it known that I, IVILLARD E. SWIFT, a citizen of the United States, residing at Worcester, in the county of Worcester and Commonwealth of Massachusetts, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Dispensing-Cabinets for Collapsible Drinking-Cups and Similar Articles, of which the following is a specication accompanied by drawings, forming a part of the same.

My invention relates to dispensing cabinets and more particularly to such a cabinet as is adapted to contain a supply of collapsible drinking cups, one of which may be projected from the cabinet within reach of a person desiring to obtain it for use, the cups being projected one at a time by the operation of a slide. While my cabinet is designed more especially for usey in dispensing drinking cups of the type hereinafter described, I do not wish to so limit its use, as it is clear that it is equally well adapted for dispensing other articles, such, for instance, as envelope.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a sectional side view of the cabinet on the plane indicated by the line 1-1 in Fig. 9, a supply of drinking cups being shown in place in the cabinet. Fig. 2 is a top sectional view on the plane indicated by the line 2-2, in Fig. 1, the drinking cups being removed. F ig. 3 is a view similar to the lower portion of Fig. 1 but showing the slide drawn out to project a drinking cup and showing the lowermostv drinkingr cup after it has been projected by the slide. Fig. 4 is al side view of one of the cups, the slide being shown in dotted lines in engagement with the cup. Fig. 5 is a view of the bottom of the cup in the position shown in Fig. 4, showing one side of the cup extended to form a flap.

Like reference characters refer to similar parts in the different gures.

The cabinet 1 comprises a bottom and four sides and has a suitable cover 2 to keep out 3 dust and other foreign matter. A short distance above the bottom of the cabinet is a therein, the purpose of which will appear later. Resting upon the shelf 3 is a slide 5 having an operating handle 6 extending through an opening in A stud 7 is rigidly attached to the slide 5 and extends downwardly through the slot t into the space between the shelf 3 and the bottom of the cabinet. In this space is a retractile spring 8 with its forward end attached to the stud 7 and its rear end attached tixedly at the rear of the space containing it.

VA short distance above the shelf 3 is a second shelf 9 from which the studs 10 eX- tend downwardly to the top of the slide 5 to maintain the slidein position on the shelfl 3 as it slides back and forth thereon. rIhe slide 5 has a cup engaging hook 11 atl its rear end extending upwardly through a slot 12 in the rear of the shelf 9.

The cups 13 which are preferably used in connection with my cabinet are flexible and are formed similarly to an ordinary envelop with its flap wide open and the cups rest in the cabinet with their flap sides l on top, as shown in Figs. l, 3 and t. `When the hook 11 is in its rearmost position it is far enough back to pass by the short Patented Apr. 18, 1916.

lower side 15 of the lowermost cup and eX- tend up against the inner face of the flap 16 of this cup. The hook 11 is also long enough to raise the flap 16 of this lowermost cup slightly above its normal position, as indicated in Fig. 1, thus opening the cup slightly so that when the slide 5 is drawn forwardly the tip of the hook 11 will more surely engage the rear edge of the short side 15 of the cup and move the cup along with the slide. The tip of the hook 1l 1s bent slightly toward the opening in the cup to still further insure its engagement therewith.

rIhe front of the cabinet has a narrow opening 17 therein wide enough to allow a drinking cup to pass therethrough and located slightly below the plane of the lowermost cup in the cabinet. A narrow portion 18 of the front of the cabinet along the upper edge of the opening 17 is Hared outwardly so that as the lowerinost cup is moved forwardly by the hook 11 its front end will strike this flared lip 18 and, after being deflected slightly downwardly thereby, will pass out through the opening 17, as shown in Fig. 3, into position to be grasped for they' purpose of withdrawing the cup from the cabinet. The spring 8 hook 11 back into normal position and in proper engagement with the rear end of the next cup.

1t is clear from an inspection of Fig. 3 that as the lowermost cup is moved forwardly through the opening 17, the front edge of the next cup above will probably be moved forwardly more or less by friction; and if this occurs, the forward edge of this second cup will strike the front of the cabinet at some distance above the lower edge of the lip 18. The retarding effect of this contact together with the friction against the next cup above will more than overcome the friction of the lowermost cup which is being withdrawn, so that only the lowermost cup can be withdrawn, all the others being prevented from moving forwardly by the front of the cabinet with its lip 18. The inner surface of the outwardly flared lip 18 is convex so that the lowerinost cup, as it is withdrawn, strikes the lip more acutely and, therefore, with less friction than does the next cup above. This allows the lowermost cup to be withdrawn easily. The friction upon the upper and lower surfaces of the second cup is approximately balanced so that the friction of the lip 18 upon its forward edge serves effectively to prevent its withdrawal with the lowermost cup.

A shelf 19 extends forwardly just below the opening 17 to support the front end of the cup as it is projected from the cabinet, thus holding this end of the cup in a convenient position to be grasped. The forward edge of this shelf 19 has a finger recess therein to facilitate still further the grasping of the cup. The flexing of the lowermost cup by the shelf 19 holds it firmly against the lower edge of the lip 18 and so still further increases the effective- Copies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each,

ness of the lip 18 in preventing withdrawal of the second cup.

A follower 20 of any suitable form is provided to rest upon the pile of cups in the cabinet to insurethat the lowermost cup will be in proper position to be engaged by the hook 11 and projected thereby through the opening 17.

I claim, p

1. A dispensing cabinet for paper drinking cups or the like, comprising means for supporting a stack of such articles, a wall having an opening for the withdrawal of the lowermost article of the stack, arranged below the plane of said supporting means, means for engaging said lowermost article to move it in the plane of said supporting means toward said opening, whereby said article is flexed as it is carried into said opening, and additional means for iexing said article as it is carried through said opening.

2. A dispensing cabinet for paper drinking cups or the like, comprising means for supporting a stack of such articles, a wall having an opening for the withdrawal of the lower-most article of the stack, arranged below the plane of said supporting means, means for engaging said lowermost article to move it in the plane of said supporting means toward said opening, whereby said article is flexed as it is carried into said opening, and means for flexing said article as it is carried through said opening, said last named means comprising a shelf projecting outwardly from the lower edge of said opening.

Dated this 20th day of August, 1912.

VVILLARD E. SWIFT.

- Witnesses:

NELLIE VVHALEN, PENELorn COMBERBACH.

by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. C. 

